All Time Best XI Series: Right Fullback

When writing about the best players in any one position, your perspective is obviously biased towards recent memories and those players you have actually seen play. However, it is relatively easy to get a historical perspective on most players these days regardless of how long ago someone featured in the Manchester United first eleven.

The more difficult task is to compare and contrast player’s abilities and styles when tactics have changed so considerably over the last century. It was only during the 1960’s that over-lapping fullbacks became ‘de rigueur’ and in the modern game it is a necessity. However, there was once a time when fullbacks simply gave the ball to the halfbacks and rarely ventured into the opponents half.

Nevertheless, the question still needs to be answered…of all the players who have played for United, who is the best right fullback?

There have been some great players to turn out in this defensive role over the years including Roy Keane, Paul Ince and even Ryan Giggs. However, my main criterion is that each player must have appeared in over 100 first team games. This roughly equates to two full seasons of football and therefore fair comparisons can be made.

What is interesting to note is Manchester United have been blessed with fantastic home grown talent in this position for many decades.

So here is the top ten in order of appearances:

Gary Neville (1992-2011)

Charlie Moore (1919-1930)

Bill Foulkes (1952-1970)

Shay Brennan (1957-1970)

Johnny Carey (1937-1953)

John Griffiths (1933-1940)

Jimmy Nicholl (1975-1982)

Mike Duxbury (1980-1990)

John Mellor (1930-1937)

Paul Parker (1991-1996)

Let’s look at each player in turn to narrow it down to a Top Three.

10. Paul Parker

Previously with Fulham and Queens Park Rangers, Parker, an England international who was part of the 1990 England team that reached the World Cup semi-finals, joined the Reds in August 1991. Blessed with fantastic pace, great temperament, superb tackling ability and seriously underrated in the air, Parker was one of the few players who did well against the physical presence of Mark Hughes. Although a central defender at QPR, he was slotted into the right back role upon his arrival at Old Trafford and apart from injury, made the right back spot his own over the next four years. During that time he won league and cup honours, before he eventually succumbed to numerous injuries and lost his place to Gary Neville. Parker moved on to Derby County at the end of the 1995/96 campaign.

Player rating: 9/10 (wish he had joined sooner)

9. John Mellor

A former Rugby League and Rugby Union player, Mellor joined the Reds from Witton Albion in May 1929. After a season in the Reserves, he replaced the long serving Charlie Moore but after losing the opening twelve matches United were relegated. He was a permanent fixture over the next three terms but upon United’s return to the First Division found himself back in the second string. A solid fullback who was reliable in defence, he moved on to Cardiff City in 1937.

Player Rating: 6/10 (ok in the Second Division but not at the highest level)

8. Mike Duxbury

Joining United straight from School, Mike was originally a forward who then moved into midfield. It was in this role that Dave Sexton gave him a ‘derby debut’ in 1980 and Duxbury went on to become one of the most consistent performers for United over the next ten years. A versatile player, he took over from John Gidman at the start of the 1982/83 season and featured in all 42 league games. With neat distribution, crisp tackling, good passing and no limit to his determination, it was no surprise to many supporters when he was called up into the full England squad in November 1983. Like many who followed him, he was heavily criticised while representing the Three Lions which severely affected his confidence. Nonetheless, he collected two FA Cup winning medals in 1983 and 1985 and went on to amass over 350 league appearances. A seriously underrated player, he never let the team down in any role he was selected to play.

Player Rating: 8/10 (superb professional who suffered through his own versatility)

7. Jimmy Nicholl

Another junior, Jimmy was originally a midfielder and central defender in United’s youth teams before Tommy Docherty tried him out at right fullback after injury to Alex Forsyth. He made the position his own and did well enough to retain his place under Dave Sexton, clocking up nearly 250 senior appearances for the Reds. Tidy with the ball and good going forward, Jimmy lacked a little pace and was often caught out tactically in defence. These deficiencies were enough for Ron Atkinson to replace him early in his tenure.

Player Rating: 7/10 (defensive frailties)

6. John Griffiths

A native of Staffordshire, Griffiths joined United via Bolton Wanders and Wolverhampton Wanderers in March 1934 and his consistent displays in the United defence brought some much needed stability as the Reds lived a ‘yo-yo’ existence between the top two divisions throughout the 1930’s. In 1936, such was his form that he was selected for England International trials and he won a Second Division Championship medal the same term. A notable athlete, his long raking stride often resulted in success in sprinting and he was one of the fastest players at the club during his time at Old Trafford. His career was cut short by the war but he still managed to notch 176 league and cup appearances and an additional 53 during the war.

Player Rating: 7/10 (solid if unspectacular)

5. Johnny Carey

Originally an inside-forward, Carey progressed through the United junior teams after joining from St. James Gate as a 17-year-old in 1936. He was highly thought of by many clubs as he spent time in the Reds second string before WW2 curtailed his early career. Upon his return, Busby switched him from the forward line to right fullback and he made the position his own over the next seven years, captaining the team to success in the 1948 FA Cup Final and 1952 League Championship. Such was his form that he was voted Footballer of the Year in 1949 and was one of the few players to feature for both Northern Ireland and the Republic. A calm, ball-playing fullback, Carey used his experience as a forward to manoeuvre the opposing attackers into positions they might not otherwise choose. A clever tactician and respected leader, Carey was one of the best fullbacks in the First Division during the later 1940’s, with a lack of pace being his only recognised weakness.

Player Rating: 9/10 (versatile, great leader, astute, great vision and passing)

4. Shay Brennan

Born in Manchester of Irish parents, Brennan was the first footballer to represent Ireland using the parentage rule. Originally an inside-forward in United’s junior set-up, he made a sensational debut immediately after Munich scoring twice from outside-left against West Brom. In the early 1960’s he was converted into a ball-playing fullback by Busby and he built up a great partnership with Bill Foulkes and Tony Dunne. Cool in possession and positionally astute, Brennan lost his place to Bobby Noble in the 1966/67 term and his career seemed to be over. Injury to Noble led to a recall for the 1967/68 term and resulted in a European Cup Winners medal. A solid if unspectacular fullback, Brennan was in the right place at the right time but probably lacked true ‘class’ in the fullback role.

Player Rating: 7/10 (dependable but lacked true quality)

3) Bill Foulkes

The St. Helen’s miner was a regular fullback from 1952 until the Munich Aircrash when he started to feature at centre-half, eventually taking over in the pivot role in the early 1960’s. A no-nonsense fullback, Foulkes was strong in the tackle, good in the air and positionally sound. However, his ability to support the attack was minimal and his skills on the ball were limited. It would be fair to say that Bill would never make it as a modern day fullback.

Player Rating 7/10 (limited technically with little attacking flair)

2. Charlie Moore

One of the safest and most dependable fullbacks in the entire football league, Moore joined the Reds from Hednesford Town in May 1919 and went on to appear in over 300 games. A player who was always in peak physical condition, he was a fine tackler, defensively sound and could read the game well. Many pundits expressed puzzlement over his exclusion from England trials given his consistent form. A very underrated player by selectors of the day.

Player Rating: 8/10 (solid defender who had little opportunity to attack)

1. Gary Neville

Selected as the number one choice at right fullback for over a decade by recognised managers such as Terry Venables, Glenn Hoddle, Kevin Keegan, Sven-Goran Eriksson as well as Alex Ferguson. During that period Neville was probably the most consistent fullback in the Premier League with the ability to defend and attack. A fine tackler he also read the game well, often covering for the central defenders. A natural leader, he was a great communicator, and read the game extremely well. Neville worked hard on his distribution to become one of the best crossers of the ball at the club with either foot and was naturally gifted going forward, forming an excellent right wing partnership with David Beckham. With over 80 England caps and over 100 Champions League appearances to his name, Neville wore his heart on his sleeve and was a hero of the Stretford End.

Player Rating: 9/10

So there you have it. Ten candidates, with Paul Parker, Johnny Carey and Gary Neville all being awarded a 9/10 rating.

Any of these players could easily be selected as the best ever right fullback and while many may disagree on personal preference, few could dispute each player’s individual quality and credentials to wear the Number 2 shirt.

Personally, I feel Carey’s lack of pace would see him exposed in the modern game and for this reason he is eliminated.

I rated Paul Parker incredibly highly and thought he had everything you would want in a modern fullback. But for injury he would be more highly regarded by many United supporters. I wish he had joined United earlier in his career for everyone to see what a superb player he was.

In the end, the decision was not really that difficult. Gary Neville captained United to league and cup triumphs, won every major club honour in the game, is one of only a handful of players to play in over 600 matches for United and was a hero on the terraces.

In his prime, for over ten years, Gary Neville was the best right fullback ever to play for Manchester United!

My name is Tony Park and I’m a Manchester United Youth historian and statistician.

81 Comments

I cannot believe that anybody who saw Shay Brennan play would say he lacked true class. He was an exceptional member of the meanest defence around. I agree with Gary as first choice but don’t dismiss Shay. He was Mr. Dependable himself.

Well said. This player is so underrated!!! If he had played for Real Madrid he would have been remembered for decades. Now, he is to be remembered like the Beckham’s best man or something like that.

OUT OF SUBJECT
I ‘m a little bit confused here. Why is there a top ten list for one position (CF , RB) when there is also a top ten list for two positions (cm which is dm and am and maybe even pure cm… I mean number 6 , 8 and number 10)

“The young boy Pogba is showing great promise,” said Ferguson. “We are quite positive about him. If we hold him back, what is going to happen? He will leave in a couple of years’ time when his contract has finished. We have to give him the opportunity to see how he will do in the first team. He has great ability. He has the physique and athleticism. He is a possibility. We have Darren Fletcher to come back and Michael Carrick tends to develop more from November onwards, so when you take that roll call of players, I am not looking to add to it.”

Minority opinion states that Inter accepted bid and Sneijder lowered his wage demands, but required a larger cut of image rights (read: he did not lower his demands) —> deal is off.

I said on here the other day if it wasn’t agreed at this meeting on Monday then it wouldn’t happen. It didn’t happen and United walked away from it all. Now it seems Sneijder is willing to drop his wage demands by £60,000 a week to join us. I bet his agents will be getting a little extra from ‘somewhere’.

If this deal now happens, I expect it to be at 11:55 on September the 1st. Berbatov style.

Ferguson is full of crap. He loves to talk up the youngsters to get off the hook for not signing anyone. But when push comes to shove he never plays them. Sneijder is not a threat to Pogba. He is a threat to Carrick and Fletcher and Giggs and other Ferguson darlings.

What? You’re saying that players like Evans, Cleverley, Smalling, Rafael, Fabio, Welbeck, Anderson, Nani, Hernandez, De Gea, probably Jones, and Rooney and Ronaldo in the past weren’t given opportunities? How does that make sense, that is bollocks! 🙄 They are all first team players now, and our young Ronny and Rooney have become two of the best players in world football.

Yeah, Fergie is full of shite. 25 years in November and still people don’t know what he’s done! 😆 😆

You didn’t say that, so hard for me to know. Well, ever since the Premier League era Ferguson has been adamant that his midfield be filled with British blood. Starting out with the likes of Robson and Sharpe, we then used the likes of Keane, Scholes and Nicky Butt. They did a fairly good job until 2001, when Fergie decided to buy Veron. Our first midfield signing since Keane, and we all know how that turned out. He also was the first non-british midfielder we used under Fergie.

Then came 2003, where we sold Veron and replaced him with Djemba-Djemba and Kleberson. Two horror stories there, but thankfully Scholes and Keane were still there and Fletch was on his way to the first team. We didn’t sign anyone else there until 2006 when Carrick took over for the retired Roy Keane, although we had used the likes of Richardson, Smith, Giggs and O’shea as midfielder the previous season. 3 of them came from our own academy.

The following summer we bought Hargo and Anderson. One turned out to be a fan favorite right away, but only plyaed 39 games, while the other still has his critics, and is given his first real chance to make himself a regular in midfield first now, 4 years later. Through this time Darren Gibson has been given more than enough chances in midfield, and now young Tom Cleverley is taking over.

I think you have misunderstood, or denied some of the factors that play in here. When Butt and Scholes were still here, we had 3 of the world’s best midfield players at this club, and probably the best central midfield partnership in history of world football. It’s not easy for any youngster to come through that. Since they retired Fletcher has done well, but other than him I can’t really say our reserves has been too good? We had Eikrem, who apart from Cleverley is about the only midfielder from the reserve team we heard about from 2007 up until summer 2010, when the likes of Pogba, Tunnicliffe and Morrison staked their claim. Our academy has produced fine forwards like Ajose, Welbeck, Will Keane, Fraizer Campbell and Joshua King, while defenders like Phil Bardsley, Reece Brown, Oliver Gill, Johnny Evans, Craig Cathcart and Johnathan Spector. You can’t possible fault Fergie for not blooding young midfielders when none of them are good enough for the first team, that’s like crying over not getting food because the store is closed. You’ve just gotta wait till it opens, and players like Cleverley will be there. 🙂

All those players you have mentioned came were bought and most of them had already made a name elsewhere.Tell me the last time a player rose from our academy and was given a fair chance.Or even our reserves.Dont give me cleverly and Welbeck because we know when the likes of Fletcher,Carrick, and Chicharito are back,they might not even make the bench.

Tou have just names Fletcher, you could argue the twins, Wes Brown, O’Shea, Gibbo, Welbeck is strating ahead of Berba. Cleverley is starting ahead of Giggs, so this myth of “favortites” is simply not correct, but why lets facts get in the way of a good Fergie bash?!
I agree we sign a lot of youth for large sums, Jones, Smalling, Anderson, Nani, Ronaldo but unlike many at least we play them.

Carrick was on the bench on Sunday, watching the whole game while Cleverley bossed the midfield. And as Stephen pointed out Berba has now been benched two games in a row because of Welbeck, and I doubt this has anything to do with match-practice, as young Danny almost played more games than the Bulgarian this summer. Of course Chicharito will be starting when he comes back, but I didn’t know he was an old big money signing? He’s what, 22 years old now? And cost us about £7 million, not too shabby. We’ve got both Carling Cup and Champions League games when September starts, so there is no doubt Cleverley and Welbeck will be given enough chances. And with Vidic and Rio out, I bet Jones and Evans will be given their opportunity to become first team-regulars as well.

Nobody is going to play every game, it’s a long season and people will just have to be patient. This is not like FIFA or FM, there is no “first 11” and regular bench. We will set up our best eleven at the time, who fits well going against the opposition, while still looking at who will play the next game. They will get their chances.

I read somewhere that United were looking at the Golden Bangura Twins of Sierra Leone – pair of forwards. I don’t buy much into the rumors but this video is immense and their stats over the last two years are pretty sick. Teteh Bangura averages more than a goal per game and Mohamed Bangura is close to two goals per game… unreal. Bürsaspor just signed Teteh.

Based on pure talent (i.e not personality) I agree with your list…Though I would maybe add Forlan in there, too. It is a shame that he came and went to quick, but he was given his chance to shine and did not. I do however believe that Pique would have made it in the Prem; he is solid, quick, and strong and could have partnered great with Vida.

Am loving these articles, really interesting to hear about some of our legends, past and present (especially going back to players from 60/70 years ago who we maybe dont know enough about). Excellent read, cheers mate and agree with your choice of red nev. Once again just goes to show some of the great players we have blessed with down the years, in all positions.

Yeah had we kept Rossi we needn’t have bothered splashing out £50 million on Tevez and Berbatov and that money could have been invested in areas of more pressing need.

Pique…hmmm, people say he wasn’t suited to the Premiership, but he has developed into quite a player while Evans is arguably behind Smalling and Jones in the pecking order. In any case he wanted to go to Barca and our only mistake was selling him on the cheap.

Tevez was a God. But I believe Ferguson when he says he was reluctant to sign him on a permanent deal knowing that he wanted to go back to South America. He flourished at Manchester City and I’m happy for him as he got a lot of stick on this blog with people making out he is crap.

If Rossi had been patient, he’d have gotten his chance at United, but leaving has turned out well for him. Would’ve been nice to see United buy him back after he’d started having success at Villarreal, but I don’t know if that option was seriously explored.

Perhaps it could happen in the future, but we’ll see. As an American, it sure stung that he chose Italy (understandable decision though, I’ll say), but it’s nice to see an American-born talent succeed at the highest of levels like he is now. And I hope he stays far, far, far away from Barcelona, except as a visitor. Was quite pleased when that deal didn’t come about!

As fans of Manchester United we can praise ourselves lucky to have seen so many talented players wear the red kit. Some have come through our ranks, some have been bought cheaply and made into stars, and there are some who have cost a lot of money because of earlier success. When you look at how football experts, not to mention City fans, drool over Aguero’s arrival in the Premier League, I feel proud to say that I am a fan of Manchester United. Not City, not Arsenal, not Liverpool, not even West Ham or Real Madrid or any other team. Why does this make me proud? Well I’ll tell ya!

Aguero is a very good player, of that people should have no doubts. He is probably the best striker Argentina has to offer these days, with Tevez being totally lost, Higuain very injury prone, and because I won’t classify Messi as a striker. But will he be a success? Well, I highly doubt it. Partly because of the type of player he is, playing in the team he plays in, and partly because of his personality. As soon as he realises that he is one of few players at City who actually gives a fuck about how he does on the pitch, I fear he will go into a severe slump or depression. Money can’t fix everything in the world. But this isn’t about Aguero. No, this is about Manchester United. Because, while the whole world now fears Manchester City because of their new acquisition, I praise myself lucky to be following a team who actually has a team full of winners. If there is one thing we have about anyone else in the world, apart from maybe Barca, it’s that all of our players are ambitious, hungry, and actually very talented players. I saw that the City team which started against Swansea cost a total of £257 million, while our team that faced West Brom included 4 players who have come through our ranks. Add Rooney and Anderson, and we had 6 players who have been with us since the age of 18.

I ofted praise myself for my ability to look past a player’s talent. Because, as fans, it’s natural for us to look at how a player does on the pitch and nothing more. But as a footballer myself, I know that talent alone will not get you anywhere. I’ve played with a lot of dickheads who will probably progress to become fine footballers, but whether they will make the team better is another case. Which is why I look at our team in great pride! Who have we signed this summer? A 20 year old goalkeeper, a humble and very shy person, who question whether he would move to the biggest club in the world because he cared about the well-being of his family. We also bought a 19 year old boy who still lives with his parents, doesn’t want to move away from there, and from what I’ve read has never tasted the sweet taste of alcohol. I wonder whether young Phil will even want to touch the champagne when we win the League?! And finally, there is 26 year old Ashley Young, who has worked his way to the top. At the age of 12 he was so adamant to become a footballer he basically told his teacher to fuck off because she didn’t believe he would become a footballer. He didn’t want to become anything else, and when he was released by Watford he trained on his own, ditched school and friends to improve his game, and from the moment he was given a chance has only progressed. From a skinny lad struggling to get into the Watford youth team, he now is the first choice left winger at Manchester United. Hunger and ambition are key factors for this club, but being a humble, down to earth guy means just as much.

If you guys know as much about Tom Cleverley as I do you will know that he has been a Manchester United fan from the age he wore diapers, being at the club since the age of 12. Since then, few people have believed in him becoming the player he is today, and there have been many occasions when they considered removing him. Had it not been for his stubborn ambition, he wouldn’t be here today. Then there is Vidic, who played football amidts the bombing in Serbia. Evra, who has like… between 10 to 20 sisters and brothers!! 😆 We know how Smalling worked his way up from Maidstone, how the Da Silva brothers listened to their grandmother before leaving Brasil, how Wayne Rooney worked his way to the top, that Dimitar Berbatov reads the bible every night before he goes to sleep… And don’t even get me started on Chicharito, who gives a signed shirt to a woman working at tesco just because she helped him finding some pasta!! And it’s not just now, this has been the Manchester United way for years! Shy and humble Paul Scholes, family-man Ole Gunnar Solskjær, our dutch keeper who didn’t play football for 4 months because of his wife’s illness, we know how both David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo worked their way to the top, and despite Ryan Giggs has turned out to have done some really bad shit lately, he has never been sent off and is the model proffesional. 829 games for Manchester United says it all.

We are Manchester United, and we should be proud of our club, our players, and last but not least our manager, who despite all his critisism has shown during the years that Manchester United will always remain a force, and a family. You guys may drool all you want over the Aguero’s, Sneijder’s, Schweinsteiger’s and Neuer’s of this world, but if we do not sign them I bet that decision is based on more than just talent. 😉 Eddy out!

Really have to feel for Arsenal. Even though I don’t like that club, its fair to say I don’t hate them more than I hate Chelsea, Pool or City for that matter. And they do play attractive football.
But Wenger has to be blamed for whatever is happening there and all in all, its just sad.

Agree. I am pretty sure very few people understand what Wenger is trying to do… currently, the future looks bleak for the Gunners. They were handily outplayed by Udinese, but were lucky to come out with a 1-0 win.

Hopefully they have another red-card draw with liverpool and we play Arsenal under the best conditions… ummmm… wait. They don’t have any stars 😀 😆 (except, Wilshere and Gervinho, who looks really good).

Wenger should have signed Shay Given and Gary Cahill. He knew Fabregas was leaving this Summer and probably knew about Nasri. He has not strengthened and this is as far as I am concerned it his fault, my heart bleeds.

Did you watch Twente-Benfica last night? Dif you see that guy DE JOHN OR DE JON playing?

May you find an extended highlights video so that you can admire his performance. He came in as a substitute and gave Benfica defenders a really hard time.

…a few more words for Pique…

There are some defencing (non) values that I hate. And you know what is the most hated of them? When a defender can’t head the ball. When the ball comes in the box and always gets over him.O’Shea + Puque :/Good morning everyone!!

Did you watch Twente-Benfica last night? Dif you see that guy DE JOHN OR DE JON playing?

May you find an extended highlights video so that you can admire his performance. He came in as a substitute and gave Benfica defenders a really hard time.

…a few more words for Pique…

There are some defencing (non) values that I hate. And you know what is the most hated of them? When a defender can’t head the ball. When the ball comes in the box and always gets over him.O’Shea + Puque :/

Yeah I agree with you on this point Eddie. We’ve got some good characters in our squad. And even if we do have players with ego problems (Ronaldo, Rooney, Cantona) Ferguson manages them better than most managers could even dream of. That gives us a greater unity than Chelsea and Manchester City can even dream of and that gives us a real competitive edge.

And the good thing is that we don’t build this unity by an appeal to the ego. At Barcelona they have incredible team spirit but it is all based around incredible arrogance that their football is the best and other teams have a duty to roll over. You can bet if Barcelona ever hit a run of bad form they would lack the character to pull themselves out of it.

However one thing that I would say is that every great squad can accommodate a few winners. Even if they are a little hard to handle.

Keane was a dick. Doesn’t matter he was a winner.

Ronaldo was a dick. Doesn’t matter he was a winner.

Tevez was a big baby. Doesn’t matter he was a winner.

So please don’t make out that we aren’t signing Sneijder because of his personality. It is purely financial.

Where you need to be careful is if players are dicks and AREN’T WINNERS. Balotelli would be the classic example. All the talent in the world but more focused on himself than winning so will screw over the team. He cannot channel his huge ego towards winning.

I agree with that I must say, the best collection of players does not win the league it is the team with the best attitude and focus which generally is successful. We were not the best side last season but there was a real unity in the squad, with strong character like Rio, Vida, Rooney, VDS and Fletch who drive the younger lads on. We also have a manager who gets the extra 10% out of players which does make the difference, hence the Fergie bashing baffles me.
We all know the Sneidjer deal will not happen and that is down to the finances, also I think Fergie got buoyed by the second half against City which has changed his focus somewhat.

Being a character doesn’t necesarrily mean you are a dick though. We’ve changed our philosophy when going after players a lot during the past few years. I think the Tevez situation did a lot to Fergie, because here he was having one world class striker who the fans loved, but who behind the scenes was trying to turn everyone against the manager, and another world class striker who wasn’t really a fans favorite, but who is humble and shy, reading the bible every night before he goes to sleep. He’s had troubles with players like Tevez, Becks, Stam, Keane, Rio and other worthy names in the past, but I think he has come as far to achieving the perfect team,, in his eyes, right now. Of course no-one’s a saint, but judging from what we get from the media these players are not only really good players, but exeptional human beings as well! He had troubles with Rooney in the past, but I’ll blame that on his agent as well. Him cheating on his wife is something I can’t, and will not excuse, but then again it’s far from unusual to hear about unfortunately. Although some of our players like Rooney, Giggsy and Rio come out in a bad light by the media, you’ve got to remember that everyone who isn’t a United fan fucking HATES Manchester United! Every journalist in this country will do everything in their power to highlight an incident by a United player, some papers even make up stories just because they know people will love it(read: Tom Cleverley). Of course there are some bad eggs at this team, but I can’t say we are worse than anyone else in the country. Compared to City, Arsenal, Chelsea, Spurs and Liverpool, to name a few teams, our lads are fucking saints and amazing human beings. Very few of our lads can’t name one of their team-mates as their best friend, if any! This is something I think we’ll lose with Fergie, this “family” feeling! Looking over all our players, we’ve got ambitious and hungry, but still young, humble, down-to-earth and friendly people. And best thing is they stay together even in their spare time! 🙂 It’s good being a United fan!

He’s a Portuguese lad brought up in that culture who came here and gave United six exceptional seasons in which the club won everything it possibly could. Now lets be grateful. He still talks fondly about the club while even hinting of one day returning. He needed to get the Spanish bug out of his ass and that I think has happened. Look for him to return when and if Mourinho arrives at OT. Just my hunch and opinion.

Lets be greatful? Like you have been in the past about great servants like lets say Fergie, “he should be sacked” Paul Scholes “Ginger Wanker” Gary Neville “I have never liked him ect”
Stop dreaming mate, he will never return and confessed his love for Real even when he was playing for us. We were just a notch on his footballing bedpost, you and many need to stop romancing about him he will never return.
Also Charlton has stated that Mourinho will never manage United while he is at the club and he is going nowhere fast.

Well written! Never liked Ronaldo’s personality nor his “LET’S STEAL THIS FOUL + ONE MORE” attribute. Some people call this clever, but this is not the reason why I like the game and watch the EPL.

If I wanted to watch this type of “clever” guys I would choose Italian or even Greek football (though, this game played in my country’s fields cannot be called football… more like let us kick the ball and cheat till we send it into the net) EPL.

If I wanted to watch this type of “clever” guys I would choose Italian or even Greek football (though, this game played in my country’s fields cannot be called football… more like let us kick the ball and cheat till we send it into the net)

Yeah I’ll bet you were cursing him or even refusing to watch him play when we were winning the league and Champions League thanks to him. Some fans are so fickle and so unforgiving. Above all, they lack in appreciation. Shameful. 🙄

Well, you won’t get your money back cause I admire his skills and I was happy when the team was winning the c.l.

NOT BECAUSE OF HIM
But because we are a team… By the way, last year we reached the final without him.

I WAS cursing when he was diving like a sissy and I always thought he doesn’t fit to the proud squad. Almost every footballer dive but when it comes to Ronaldo we are talking about one of the best divers ever. In fact, je inspired a new sport DIVE ACTING. Yeah… It combines both HIM
But because we are a team… By the way, last year we reached the final without him.

I WAS cursing when he was diving like a sissy and I always thought he doesn’t fit to the proud squad. Almost every footballer dive but when it comes to Ronaldo we are talking about one of the best divers ever. In fact, je inspired a new sport DIVE ACTING. Yeah… It combines both body and mental skills. Some say it will never be the same without ronaldo.

Anyway, we almost reached the 2010 c.l. final but we were unlucky with the red car… WITHOUT RONALDO.

He has scored beautiful goals, he gave speed to our counter attacks but YES!!! I FCKING CURSED EACH TIME HE DIVED!!! AND IT FELT GOOD!!!

You know, we’re bemoaning players like Rossi and Pique. That’s fine. They are world class players I admit, but were they looking world class back in 2006. No. They were playing in the Reserves, struggling to make the first team. Very inconsistent as well. Today we’re in the exact same position. We’ve got an even bigger bunch of talented and inconsistent youngsters. Welbeck, Anderson,Cleverly,Pogba etc. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that we won’t sign Sneijder. Some say he won’t hinder the progress of these youngsters, but that’s just ridiculous. Any £35m player is going to start 90% of the games. But for these youngsters, continuity is critical. You want to play this week, next week and so forth. Considering that we have two players who would be directly affected by signing Sneijder,in Ando and Clev,both will have to leave to flourish. Carrick and Fletcher will not be affected because Sneijder can’t do what they do

I just wrote a really long piece describing the strengths of Ashley Young, what he will give to this team, exactly why he may be one of our most vital signings during Fergie’s era, and gave a thurough input to exactly how those strengths affects opposition full backs, his team mates, and even the fans. Being such an underrated player as he is, he is very simple to the eye, but through a grave examination of him I’ll be able to describe how his lack of “flash” and freestyling skills on the football pitch, even go so far as to call him predictable, makes him one of our most important players. I used a couple of links and spent over 45 minutes writing it, so it’s pretty long… I wasn’t able to post it here because of the links, but if you think it’s an interesting read press the thumbs up button and I’ll ask Rimmer if he’ll be interested in putting it up as an article. 🙂 Cheers!

Arsenal will be without Song and Gervinho for the United game, with Nasri following Fabregas out the door. The game also comes just 4 days after their Champions League qualifier in Italy, with there still being question marks over the fitness of Wilshire and Djorou.

If people write off Chelsea, with a fit Lampard and Torres looking better already, City will be a real threat and we all need to taste the horrible reality of that. We have a keeper at best finding his way, a midfield hich relies on hope and past glories and a defence at the moment without rio and Vida, this league is far from in the bag.

By the way, Rui Costa is also Portuguese… this doesn’t make him a diver, or a cry boy, or a person full of lust for RM glory and money.
Of course being a great footballer doesn’t make you a c@nt of your own class.

Irwin, now that was an example of consistency.
Gaz only started being really consistent at around 30 years old, gave us four great years and then injuries did him in.
BUT in his twenties too often Gaz was giving me jitters. Dodgy. Irwin, as left back, could well be a 9.
Cafu would be another genuine RB 9/10.
I’d give Neville an 8 as he was not nearly as consistent as I wised he was (Giggs too, until his late 20’s was actually quite inconsistent but few people seem to remember that)

It was another example of Marcelo and Pepe kicking lumps out of Barca players and Mourinho lacking class. What Pique said after the game was somewhat laughable, but the Portuguse manager lacks class and why he will never United.

Well, you won’t get your money back cause I admire his skills and I was happy when the team was winning the c.l.

NOT BECAUSE OF HIM
But because we are a team… By the way, last year we reached the final without him.

I WAS cursing when he was diving like a sissy and I always thought he doesn’t fit to the proud squad. Almost every footballer dive but when it comes to Ronaldo we are talking about one of the best divers ever. In fact, je inspired a new sport DIVE ACTING. Yeah… It combines both HIM
But because we are a team… By the way, last year we reached the final without him.

I WAS cursing when he was diving like a sissy and I always thought he doesn’t fit to the proud squad. Almost every footballer dive but when it comes to Ronaldo we are talking about one of the best divers ever. In fact, je inspired a new sport DIVE ACTING. Yeah… It combines both

I believe Evra is going to be fit. It would not surprise me with Fergie the rotator that Giggs will start against Spurs and he would get the armband. Truthfully I think he needs to stick with the Anderson Cleverley partnership to see if that gains fruit. I have been critical of the Brazilian in the past, but he needs to games to really prove either way if he can make it as a United player.

He’s practically the oldest! I’d like it to be given to Carrick as a reward for all the bullshit he has to put up with from people who for some reason don’t like passing, and to wind those same people right up.